In orthopedic surgery environment, there is a need for allowing full access to the operating area with total control at each step. Therefore, X-ray imaging using C-stands or G-stands comprising imaging systems is commonly used, wherein a C-stand only has one X-ray imaging device while a so-called G-stand comprises two such imaging devices, with their axes oriented at an angle to each other.
A symmetrical G-stand may in some circumstances be preferable to a C-stand, since it comprises two perpendicularly mounted X-ray imaging devices, and is thereby able to provide both frontal and lateral X-ray imaging with fixed settings. The ability to simultaneously see the surgical area in both a frontal and lateral view reduces the need to move and adjust the equipment during surgery, thus reducing both surgery time and radiation dose. When the need to move the equipment is reduced, better sterility is also achieved.
X-ray imaging devices may be used for accurate positioning of implants thereby creating a safer and more reliable method of surgery. The X-ray devices are fixed in perpendicular relation to each other and may be tilted somewhat for better access and views.
A general problem in the technical field of X-ray imaging is to protect personnel involved in surgery as well as parts of the patient's body, not part of an area of interest, from unnecessary exposure to X-ray radiation. A common way to achieve this is that the X-ray beam is narrowed by protective lead collimator shutters.
A problem with conventional systems is to easily and accurately narrow or widen the X-ray beam, used for imaging, to the area of interest as the area of interest may change, e.g. during surgery. There is a need to improve the user's or surgeon's understanding of what the selected area of interest is and to improve the method of changing the area of interest during use of the X-ray imaging device, e.g. as surgery proceeds.
In presently used systems, keyed in numerical values are often used to adjust the physical positions of the collimators. This is very indirect, difficult and non-intuitive. These difficulties will result in non-optimal setting of the collimators, and most likely overexposure X-ray radiation.